Table Of ContentEat, Live, Pray: A celebration of Zarathushti culture and cuisine
© 2012 Federation of Zoroastrian Associations of North America (FEZANA)
www.fezana.org
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ISBN: 978-0-9826871-2-3
Cover and layout: Hukhta Publications -
CONGRATULATIONS, FEZANA
The Federation of the Zoroastrian Association of North America (FEZANA) was registered in the State of Illinois,
USA, on June 2, 1987 as a non-profit, religious and charitable organization. In the twenty-five years since then
FEZANA has had many accomplishments. In July 1996, we undertook a "Strategic Planning" exercise (FEZANA
Journal, Fall 1996) which identified four collective goals for the community and the organization. One of the
goals was “a thousand points of light” aimed at preserving our community’s religious and cultural entity. This
publication, “Eat, Live, Pray: A celebration of Zarathushti culture and cuisine” upholds this goal.
Food plays a very important role in our Zarathushti psyche. We create all varieties of food for different
occasions; special food for happy occasions and we also have food for the dead in our religious ceremonies. In
the Summer, 2011 edition of the FEZANA Journal, Sarosh and Benafsha Khariwala together with Arnavaz Chubb,
all in Melbourne, Australia, explored the concept of “Food as Our Identity”. They did a superb job in soliciting
articles for the meaning of food in our various rituals, of finding Zarathushti chefs from around the world who
graciously shared their prize recipes. Farishta Murzban Dinshaw took their work to the next level, collecting
recipes from Journal readers and using her love of history to add the cherry on the top. We thank Farishta for
undertaking this project with such dedication and love.
We offer the gift of this book to all Zarathushtis who are interested in good food as we celebrate FEZANA’s silver
jubilee this year. We invite you to relish the experience and the taste as you read the articles and try the recipes.
Dolly
Montreal, Canada, 2012
Dolly Dastoor, the Editor of FEZANA Journal, has been involved with FEZANA from its inception twenty-five
years ago. She served as FEZANA’s President from 1994-1998.
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ZARATHUSHTI CULINARY TRADITIONS –
FOOD FOR THE MIND, BODY AND SOUL
EDITORIAL, Fezana Journal, Summer 2011
Besides prayer, food is the greatest bond that binds and brings Zarathushtis
together. Whether we live to eat or eat to live, food and all that goes with it, from
the preparation to consumption, is an integral part of our culture and way of life as
Zarathushtis. From lavish celebratory feasts to solemn liturgical rituals, food and
the enjoyment of Ahura Mazda’s bounty surely defines the Zarathushti ethos more
than anything else. Zarathushti philosophy and theology may be cogitated in ivory
towers, but it is in the family kitchen that a big part of our culture and traditions
have been kept alive.
To the Zarathushtis of the Diaspora, memories of home are often linked to food
and returns to the motherland almost always involve gastronomic indulgences that
are long remembered despite or because of the sometimes violent protestations of
the digestive tract. We live in times when coronary conditions, diabetes and other insidious lifestyle diseases
threaten to stand between the Zarathushti and the enjoyment of their culinary birthright. Or so we are given to
understand. Our forebears however were celebrated for their longevity and vigor. What was their secret? Come,
let us sniff and savor our way through the delights of our Zarathushti culinary heritage and discover how and
why we nourish our minds, bodies and souls.
Within these pages, foodies from all walks of life record and revive the favorite and the forgotten delicacies that
make up our culinary heritage. Academics and priests give us an insight into historical, nutritional and religious
aspects of food, while chefs and passionate cooks share their recipes and stories. Our thanks and appreciation
goes to all the contributors for their efforts and the friendships forged along the way. We all have to eat to live,
so in what better way can Zarathushtis participate and share in preserving and perpetuating our traditions than
through cooking and eating.
When Dolly Dastoor first approached Sarosh Khariwala, President of the Zoroastrian Association of Victoria,
Melbourne, Australia and his wife Benafsha to guest edit this issue of FEZANA Journal [Summer, 2011], the task
was taken on with enthusiasm and some trepidation. Sarosh, a chef, and Benafsha, a pharmacist involved in the
production of professional pharmaceutical journals, co-opted Arnavaz Chubb, a student of the Zarathushti
religion and one time Associate Editor of Parsiana to join the team. Rashna Tata, erstwhile President of the
Zarathushtrian Association of New Zealand, and Jehangir Mehta, self-confessed foodie and past President of the
Zoroastrian Association of Western Australia, have assisted and contributed to this Journal, making it a truly
Down Under effort. Our thanks to Dolly Dastoor and Behram Pastakia for their invitation to guest edit and for
their guidance, patience and faith in us while we gathered, prepared and eventually plated up this tribute to our
gastronomic heritage.
“Be farmoid” and “Jamvaa chaaloji”.
Arnavaz, Benafsha and Sarosh
Melbourne, Australia, 2011
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Arnavaz Chubb has a Master’s degree and a gold medal in Avesta and
Pahlavi from Bombay University, Mumbai, India. She has been Editor of
the Zoroastrian Association of Victoria (ZAV) newsletter, Ratheshstar, and
has been a past President and a long standing committee member of the
association. She also conducts religious classes for ZAV.
Benafsha Khariwala is a pharmacist by profession and is currently the
Managing Editor of a professional pharmaceutical journal published in
Melbourne, Australia.
Sarosh Khariwala is a graduate from the Institute of Hotel Management,
Catering Technology and Applied Nutrition in Mumbai, India. Sarosh has
worked in the hospitality industry for over 30 years both in India and in
Australia. He is now as an Executive Chef, and also consults for the
L to R: Benafsha Khariwala, Sarosh Khariwala, and hospitality industry. He is the President of the Zoroastrian Association of
Arnavaz Chubb, Melbourne, Australia Victoria.
ANOTHER COOK ENTERS THE KITCHEN
I read the articles in the food-themed issue of the Fezana Journal (Summer, 2011) with avid interest, and
thought to myself that it would be a pity if all the work that Arnavaz, Benafsha and Sarosh put into it did not
reach a wider readership. I presented Dolly Dastoor, editor, Fezana Journal, and Behram Pastakia, chair of the
FEZANA publications committee, with the idea to expand the information into a publication that would
celebrate Zarathushti culture and cuisine. My vision of it was that it would be available on the FEZANA website
for people to download for free and print out at home so that people across the globe would have access to it.
FEZANA is celebrating its silver jubilee in 2012, and a publication to share with the world would be a fitting way
to commemorate the milestone. Dolly and Behram were supportive of the idea, and we sent out a call for
recipes to FEZANA members and Journal readers.
This book has 72 recipes, which is just a sampling of Parsi and Persian dishes. Readers from Australia, Britain,
Canada, India, Iran, Pakistan and the United States of America have contributed the recipes. Some recipes have
been edited to fit the page, but I have tried to maintain the voice of the contributor as far as possible. For this
reason, you may see that spellings of non-English terms vary and are not italicized. Some people might wish that
there had been photographs to accompany the recipes. It was a conscious decision to make this a text-based
publication so that it would be faster to download and save toner ink when printing. For more recipes, including
quintessential ones like Patra ni Machi (Fish in Banana Leaves) or Khoresht Fesenjan (Pomegranate and Walnut
Stew), visit websites like www.parsicuisine.com and www.mypersiankitchen.com.
The hardest task in putting this book together was providing comparable conversions for imperial and metric
measurements. To keep things simple, I have rounded off the measurements. Complicating the issue is that
metric measurements specify the quantity of many ingredients by weight instead of volume, and dry ingredients
have different textures and particle size so measurements are not uniform. For instance, one cup each of all
purpose flour, chopped nuts, and sugar when converted to weight in grams have different values – 110 g, 150 g
and 200 g respectively. Standard measuring utensils vary greatly in different countries. For example, an
Australian tablespoon is 20 ml while an American one is 15 ml. I referred extensively to The Metric Kitchen
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(www.jsward.com) while converting the measurements. This book has family recipes that have been cooked
multiple times with embellishments and adaptations in household kitchens rather than an institutional kitchen
so you might need to experiment with them to find what measurements work best for your taste.
Selected articles from the Fezana Journal Summer, 2011 issue on food and Zarathushti culture along with
features that I researched complement the recipes. The information and recipes have been categorized in three
sections: EAT traces the various social and geopolitical influences on Zarathushti cuisine over a span of three
thousand years; LIVE describes some of the celebratory occasions in our lives and the accompanying foods that
make them special; and PRAY contains information about our rituals and holy days.
It is commonly held that too many cooks spoil the broth, but this particular broth would have tasted quite bland
without the support of other cooks, particularly Dolly Dastoor, Minoo Mehrayin, and Diana Katgara.
This publication is dedicated to my father, late Murzban Nadirshah Dinshaw, whose appetite for good food was
as large as his heart – Daddy, I miss you every time I have rumble tumble on toast.
Farishta
Toronto, Canada, 2012
Farishta Murzban Dinshaw has a Masters degree in institutional food management from the University
of Karachi, Karachi, Pakistan. She enjoys eating more than cooking, and revels in the diverse ethnic
cuisines available in Toronto, Canada, where she lives. Her interest in Zarathushti history and religion
began at age fifteen when she started volunteering at the Friday School for Little Zarathushtis, Karachi.
She has presented papers on Zarathushti religion at several congresses, including the World’s Religions
after September 11 Congress, Montreal in 2006. Farishta is a regular contributor to the Fezana Journal
and Hamazor. She is also the author of Discovering Ashavan, a story set in ancient Iran about a young
boy befriended by Zarathushtra.
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CONTENTS
numerical order
EAT 1
TIMELINE 2
MEAT OR VEGETABLES? 3
ACHAEMENIANS 4
Candied Turnips vegetarian 5
PARTHIANS 6
Eshkeneh, onion soup vegetarian 7
Parthian Lamb meat 8
SASSANIANS 9
Boz Ghormeh, lamb casserole meat 10
WINE 11
LAND OF MILK AND SUGAR 13
Gos noo Bufaat, meat in sweet and sour coconut gravy meat 14
Khatto Mitho Kheemo, sweet and sour ground meat meat 15
Jerdalu ma Marghi, chicken with apricots and saffron chicken 16
Khajoor ni Ghari, dates in phyllo pastry sweet 17
Dar ni Pori, lentils in pastry sweet 18
IRANI NU HOTEL, Irani cafes 19
Zereshk Palao, berry rice rice 20
PROJECT BASKET CASE, a search for the perfect topli nu paneer 21
COLONIAL INFLUENCE 23
Caramel Custard sweet 24
Vanilla Pound Cake sweet 25
Nankhatai, Parsi shortbread cookie sweet 26
Lamb Trotter Cinnamon Jelly meat 27
Porc Vindalho, pork vindaloo meat 28
GLOBAL INFLUENCE 29
Chai Crème Brule sweet 30
LIVE 31
Agarni no Lavro, agarni favor sweet 32
Mava na Penda, sweetened milk balls sweet 33
Khaman na Ladoo, raisin and coconut balls sweet 34
Tafteh, hearty soup vegetarian 35
Rava, semolina pudding sweet 36
Rava, modified recipe for the microwave sweet 37
Mithoo Dahi, sweet yogurt sweet 38
Dhundar, yellow lentils with rice vegetarian 39
Gaam no Patio, fish patio from the village fish 40
Mutton Curry meat 41
Papri ma Gos, meat with beans meat 42
Machi na Kevab, fish kebabs fish 43
WEDDINGS 44
Mava ni Boi, reduced milk sweet sweet 45
Varadh-vara, semolina cakes sweet 46
Saas ni Machi, fish in sauce fish 47
Khichdee, lentil rice rice 48
Lagan nu Bhonu, the wedding feast 49
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Gajar Mewa nu Achaar, carrot and raisin pickle condiment 50
Laganshala, Parsi wedding stew vegetarian 51
Salli Marghi, chicken with potato straws chicken 52
Farcha, fried chicken chicken 53
Masala nu Ros Gos, spicy lamb roast meat 54
Dahi nu Gos, meat with yogurt meat 55
Gos na Cutlets, lamb cutlets meat 56
Tikhi Mithi Tamota ni Gravy, sweet and spicy tomato gravy condiment 57
Palao, rice with meat rice 58
Lagan nu Custard, wedding custard sweet 59
Mango Kulfi sweet 60
Sofreh Gava, Persian wedding table 61
Lork, fruit and nut mix 62
FOOD FOR HEALTH 63
Chora ma Kharia, trotters in black eyed beans meat 64
Gaur Amli nu Kachumbar, sweet and sour onion salad condiment 64
PRAY 65
Dron, unleavened sacramental bread bread 66
Papdi, flat bread bread 67
Malido, a sweet confection of grains and nuts sweet 68
Malido, a modified North American recipe sweet 70
Bhakra, Parsi donut sweet 71
Chapat, Parsi crepe sweet 72
Kopra Pak, coconut sweet sweet 73
STUM, food offerings for immortal spirits 74
Sir o Sedove, garlic sauce condiment 75
PIR E SABZ, the green shrine 76
Aush e Reshteh, noodle stew vegetarian 77
GAHAMBAR, congregational feasts 78
Ambakaliyu, mango chutney condiment 79
Papeta ma Gos, meat with potatoes meat 80
Dhansak, meat and vegetable stew meat 81
Dhansak na Chawal, browned rice rice 82
Dhansak, a modified North American recipe meat 83
Gos na Kevab, meat balls meat 84
Vaal, dry split beans vegetarian 85
NOROOZ, spring festival 86
Komach, sweet bread bread 87
Kuku-ye-Sabzi, savory herb frittata eggs 88
Falooda sweet beverage 89
MAH BAHMAN, month in honor of angel Bahman 90
Baffena, mango pickle condiment 91
Papeta ne Sekhta ni Seengh, potato and drumsticks vegetarian 92
Kuku Cauliflower, cauliflower frittata vegetarian 93
Channa ni Dar, chickpeas vegetarian 94
EGGS 95
Kera Per Eedu, eggs on bananas eggs 96
Tamota Papeta Per Eedu, eggs on tomatoes and potatoes eggs 97
Tamota Per Eedu, eggs on tomatoes eggs 98
Akoori, Parsi scrambled eggs eggs 99
Parsi Pora, Parsi omelet eggs 100
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CONTENTS
by category
DISHES CATEGORIES PAGE
Dron, unleavened sacramental bread bread 66
Papdi, flat bread bread 67
Komach, sweet bread bread 87
Kuku-ye-Sabzi, savory herb cake bread 88
Jerdalu ma Marghi, chicken with apricots and saffron chicken 16
Salli Marghi, chicken with potato straws chicken 52
Farcha, fried chicken chicken 53
Gajar Mewa nu Achaar, carrot and raisin pickle condiment 50
Tikhi Mithi Tamota ni Gravy, sweet and spicy tomato gravy condiment 57
Gaur Amli nu Kachumbar, sweet and sour onion salad condiment 64
Sir o Sedove, garlic sauce condiment 75
Ambakaliyu, mango chutney condiment 79
Baffena, mango pickle condiment 91
Kuku-ye-Sabzi, savory herb frittata eggs 88
Kera Per Eedu, eggs on bananas eggs 96
Tamota Papeta Per Eedu, eggs on tomatoes and potatoes eggs 97
Tamota Per Eedu, eggs on tomatoes eggs 98
Akoori, Parsi scrambled eggs eggs 99
Parsi Pora, Parsi omelet eggs 100
Gaam no Patio, fish patio from the village fish 40
Machi na Kevab, fish kebabs fish 43
Saas ni Machi, fish in sauce fish 47
Parthian Lamb meat 8
Boz Ghormeh, lamb casserole meat 10
Gos noo Bufaat, meat in sweet and sour coconut gravy meat 14
Khatto Mitho Kheemo, sweet and sour ground meat meat 15
Lamb Trotter Cinnamon Jelly meat 27
Porc Vindalho, pork vindaloo meat 28
Mutton Curry meat 41
Papri ma Gos, meat with beans meat 42
Masala nu Ros Gos, spicy lamb roast meat 54
Dahi nu Gos, meat with yogurt meat 55
Gos na Cutlets, lamb cutlets meat 56
Chora ma Kharia, trotters in black eyed beans meat 64
Papeta ma Gos, meat with potatoes meat 80
Dhansak, meat and vegetable stew meat 81
Dhansak, a modified North American recipe meat 83
Gos na Kevab, meat balls meat 84
Zereshk Palao, berry rice rice 20
Khichdee, lentil rice rice 48
Palao, rice with meat rice 58
Dhansak na Chawal, browned rice rice 82
Chai Crème Brule sweet 30
Khajoor ni Ghari, dates in phyllo pastry sweet 17
Dar ni Pori, lentils in pastry sweet 18
Caramel Custard sweet 24
Vanilla Pound Cake sweet 25
Nankhatai, Parsi shortbread cookie sweet 26
Agarni no Lavro, agarni favor sweet 32
Mava na Penda, sweetened milk balls sweet 33
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Khaman na Ladoo, raisin and coconut balls sweet 34
Rava, semolina pudding sweet 36
Rava, modified recipe for the microwave sweet 37
Mithoo Dahi, sweet yogurt sweet 38
Mava ni Boi, reduced milk sweet sweet 45
Varadh-vara, semolina cakes sweet 46
Lagan nu Custard, wedding custard sweet 59
Mango Kulfi sweet 60
Malido, a sweet confection of grains and nuts sweet 68
Malido, a modified North American recipe sweet 70
Bhakra, Parsi donut sweet 71
Chapat, Parsi crepe sweet 72
Kopra Pak, coconut sweet sweet 73
Falooda sweet beverage 89
Candied Turnips vegetarian 5
Eshkeneh, onion soup vegetarian 7
Tafteh, hearty soup vegetarian 35
Dhundar, yellow lentils with rice vegetarian 39
Laganshala, Parsi wedding stew vegetarian 51
Aush e Reshteh, noodle stew vegetarian 77
Vaal, dry split beans vegetarian 85
Papeta ne Sekhta ni Seengh, potato and drumsticks vegetarian 92
Kuku Cauliflower, cauliflower frittata vegetarian 93
Channa ni Dar, chickpeas vegetarian 94
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